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Product Description

This new starter set is made up of fan favorites pulled from previous Axis and Allies Miniatures expansions, including an uncommon T-34. Miniatures with all new paint schemes and new abilities, such as Tanks with Commanders are included in this all new 60 piece set. Included in the new starter are new full color maps.

Product Reviews

I looked all over for the perfect miniature game and found one! I
looked all over for the perfect game, narrowed it down,
and because I like WWII, i bought this one. I loved it! I do not like
painting miniatures for like, hours, so am very pleased! I recommend
it.

I have always wanted to get into a miniature war game and I
found the perfect one!! A&A is fun, fast, and compared to the
other miniature games out there very very cheap!! I am
currently collecting the base set but i'll soon have em all. Definite
must have for any casual wargamer!!

For anyone already familiar with the Axis & Alliesgame
universe I
don't have to describe how addictive this game can be. I've
been an
avid player of A&A for over 10 years now, and while I can't
play as
often as I used to it doesn't mean the desire isn't there.

A&A Miniatures is the perfect solution for older gamers on a
time-crunch and it's about time Avalon Hill figured this
format out.
A&A Miniatures is based on a "sqad level" or skirmish style
battle
with each games lasting between 7 and 10 real-time minutes,
one minute
per turn. The units used in this version of A&A are like no
WWII unit
you've seen before from Avalon
Hill. This time around you'll find
actual miniatures that are scaled quite well to each other. For
starters, this game is as much a collector's game as it is a
gamer's
game. The first unit set of A&A:Miniatures features 48 units
from both
Axis and Allied forces. This doesn't mean just USA and
Germany as
UK, Russia, and Japan also bring units to the party. These
units
include infantry, recon units such as jeeps and armored cars,
anti-tank guns and artillery, and of course tanks (armor) of all
sizes. Each unit is uniquely painted instead of dipped one
color like
the standard A&A games. The unit sizing is as close as you
can get
and still remain playable, if infantry were actually scaled
to a tank
you couldn't find them on the board! In other words an M1
Garand Rile
team is about the same size as a standard A&A infantry
piece. An SS
Panther Ausf. G is 3" long and 1" wide while a US M4A1
Sherman is only
2" long. This gives an actual feeling of scale to battles
involving
infantry teams and tanks instead of the universal unit size
of the
standard A&A games.

Before you get excited about playing with 48 miniature
models however,
you must know that this starter set only includes 12 units
out of the
48 possible units. Avalon Hill took a page from miniature
combat
games such as Warhammer and MechWarrior by creating three
separate
classes of units. Common units are usually the more basic
infantry
teams and anti-tank guns, Uncommon units tend to be heavy
infantry and
commanders, while the hardest to find Rare units are the
heavy tanks
and armor of the game. This means that most of the time
you'll only
find 1-3 great units in a starter kit or expansion pack
whicle most of
the rest will be duplicates or common infantry. Don't get
me wrong as
this isn't bad, you'll need quite a few grunts to round out your
forces in the future. I'm just saying it's always fun to
rip open a
new Booster Pack and see what's hiding inside... remember
baseball/basketball cards as a kid? Same principle, just
imagine
looking for that rare rookie card and substitute a Tiger 1 tank
instead. :)

Each unit is accompanied by a unit card listing all sorts
of stats on
that unit including; attack, defense, cost, movement, range,
and info
on the real world unit. These unit cards are displayed
during the
game for the units you've chosen to fight with. This makes
keeping
track of combat info for various units much easier during
battles.

The actual battles are very fierce and over in about
45-60 minutes
once you and a friend or two get the rules figured out.
Each player
gets 100 purchase points to spend on his army. Unit prices
vary from
3-10 PP each for infantry teams to 15-65 PP each for armor and
half-tracks. You'll see combat squads of anywhere from 11
to 4 units
depending on purchase choices. Each player keeps his
purchases secret
until the map is chosen (by a die roll) from the 6 available
maps.
Each player may then place his/hers units on the map after
turn order
is decided by a die roll. Game phases are as follows:

Initiative Phase (both players, determines First/Second
player)

First Player's Movement Phase

Second Player's Movement Phase

First Player's Assault Phase

Second Player's Assault Phase

Casualty Phase (both players)

Initiative is rolled for at the beginning of every turn, this
determines the first and second player for that turn. This
is quite
important as movement and assault order can make or break
your turn.

Movement allows your units to use up their movement
points and place
themselves for the assault phase. Units may incure
defensive fire
while moving near enemy troops.

Assault phases are where you actually fire and calculate
damage done
to enemy units. There are differing levels of damage for
infantry and
vehicles, possibilities are disrupted, damaged, and
destroyed.

After all combat is resolved casualties are removed and
damage applied
using damage tokens for each unit. There are other rules I
won't
describe here such as line-of-sight, cover and camouflage, and
specific unit bonuses. I'll just say there's definitely
depth to this
game that will take a few games to grasp completely, but
when you do
it's worth it.

Victory Victory may happen after the casualty phase of
turn 7 if one
player controls the objective hex without an enemy unit also
next to
the objective. If both players are next to the objective at
turn 7
you will continue to check and see if the victory conditions
have been
met after every casualty phase until turn 10. If by the end
of turn
10 no one has uncontested control of the objective both
players count
the purchase point value of their currently-surviving units.
The
player with the most PP value left alive is the winner.

Bottom Line

I'm so glad Avalon Hill took a chance with this game and
brought some
fresh air into a crowded and dusty Axis & Allies atmosphere.
Older
games are generally busy with work, families, and all manner of
responsibilities that make those dorm-room all-night battles
a thing
of the past. A&A: Miniatures has given all of us armchair
generals a
new lease on combat. With games usually lasting less than 1
hour it's
even possible to play a couple games on a Saturday evening. The
balance between realism and playability is just about
perfect with A&A
Minis, it's more detailed and strategy driven than A&A
Revised or the
Europe and Pacific versions yet still very beginner
friendly.

My long-time complaint about A&A versions before has been the
likelihood of several horrendous dice rolls that ruin your
whole game.
I've had 12 tank attacks completely fail against 6 infantry
and a
fighter due to perfect rolls of 5 and 6. A&A: Minis takes
the luck
out of the game due to it's combat system. With as many as
17 dice
for tanks and as few as 5 for infantry teams, the likelihood of
ridiculous outcomes is lessened considerably. Thanks to the
new rules
and the Small-Soldiers skirmish-style gameplay, this is a
much better
2-player game than D-Day ever was.

I strongly recommend picking up a few Set 1 Booster Packs
and at least
two Set II Booster Packs. You'll need a decent variety of
units to
set up a decent combined-arms strike force, plus it's just
fun seeing
what unit's you've acquired. At its current price point the
Starter
Set and Booster Packs are very reasonable, just buy one
every month or
so and by next holiday season you'll be able to wipe that
grin off
your buddies face with your incredible unit choices.

NOTE: These pieces may look like the G.I. Joe army men
you used to
have but they aren't near as bulletproof. The men are
decently strong
but can be broken off their base easily. Each tank gun
raises and
depresses for elevation and the turrets rotate realistically. A
warning from personal experience, the tank guns are very
easily broken
if tossed into a box. Small children could easily choke or
chew on
most of these units, so keep kids away for their health and your
unit's safety.

2ND NOTE: I tried keeping my A&A Starter set in its
original box for
awhile but soon abandoned that idea after my 2nd Booster
Pack. I now
keep all my units in a fishing tackle box from Plano, it
works great
and has adjustable sizes for its compartments. My box is
double-sided
with clear lids on both sides. One side is Allied, one
Axis, and my
maps go in one big compartment. Just a thought, it's better
than
plastic baggies and broken tank cannons.